Description
ARTIST STATEMENT
I work in ceramics, primarily porcelain, but I use the clay body that fits the project I’m working on.
My work is a way for me to deal with my feelings and it’s cheaper than therapy. Because I clawed my way through the ranks of a male dominated field as women were starting to break through to the executive ranks, I experienced a lot of duplicitous interactions, they professed admiration and relied on the intelligence of women as their secretaries and assistants but promoted men.
I delight in the viewer’s skewed emotional response of, “gee, that’s pretty” before they read the text, and “Oh no, that’s ugly” when they read it. I also enjoy stacking metaphors and creating hidden meanings for the viewer to discover. Painting the floral, Delft-inspired fussy bits is my Zen meditation.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Pat Young has been a San Francisco Bay Area ceramicist for the past 20 years. Although she dabbled during her 30 years as a film and production executive in Los Angeles, it wasn’t until she moved back north that she pursued it – and now works as studio staff at a local community college. Her subject matter has changed over the years, today she might be exploring the perception of women in history and current politics or the intricacies of an illuminated manuscript – or she can be distracted by a cool old pickup, a barn or a crow in a tree.
© Pat Young